“I’ll leave you to it,” Dr. Jacobs said. “A nurse will be over in a couple minutes.”
I watched him go. Avery joined me against the wall, her hip bumping mine. “You okay?” she whispered.
“No,” I said. “Not at all. I want to kill my brothers right now. I’m mad at myself. All of us need to change clothes and I just don’t even know what to do right now.”
“I can send Mateo over to find Ethan if you want. Levi can go with him.”
I considered it for a moment. “No. I need him to come here himself.”
She nodded and didn’t leave my side as I pulled out my phone and called my brother again.
Voicemail. But now, it was full, because I’d called him numerous times already.
Dread curled through me as I called again. And again. And again until I felt tears threatening to fall. Avery slipped her hand in mine, giving me a gentle squeeze as we waited.
Finally, on the tenth call, Ethan picked up. “Hello?”
He sounded groggy. Why did he sound groggy? “Ethan,” I hissed. “Where the fuck are you? Why haven’t you checked your text messages? I’ve been texting and calling.”
“What . . . why?”
My eyes squeezed shut. I was so close to snapping. So fucking close. “I had to take Laura to the emergency room. She’s okay, but she had to get stitches.”
“What? What the fuck?” I heard a spark in his voice, but it wasn’t anger. It was fear. “Fuck, June. Fuck.”
“What’s wrong?”
He drew in a deep breath, not immediately answering. Not asking about Laura. Not asking what happened?—
“I’ve been late on the insurance payments so we aren’t covered right now.”
“Fuck,” Avery muttered next to me. She’d heard every word.
I closed my eyes slowly. The gut wrenching worry only got worse.
“You know how to sew?—”
“I would never sew my niece’s hand, Ethan,” I said, every word carrying a deadly vehemence. “Are you fucking kidding me right now? Why didn’t you tell me about this? Why didn’t you ask for help? Where thefuck have you been?”
“I’ve been asleep.”
Hadn’t he told me he’d picked up a shift today? Why was he sleeping?
“I’m sorry. I . . .” The pain in his voice hurt me, but all of my sympathy had been squeezed dry.
“While you’ve been asleep, I’ve been parentingyourchild. Who has asked for you several times becauseyouare her father.”
“You’re better at parenting?—”
“I’m not her mom.” I kept my voice low. The anger coursing through made me tremble. “I don’t know what you want to happen here.”
“You could always legally adopt?—”
“Ethan. I will stick my foot so far up your ass you will need brain surgery if you finish that sentence. I need you to come upto the hospital and sign paperwork,” I said calmly. “I will take care of the money part.”
Avery’s eyes went wide. “June.”
I shook my head at her and waited for Ethan to respond. Finally, he blew out a breath.
